This year’s awards for women in media are back for this year following B&T’s launch of the inaugural awards last year to celebrate the "women already making a difference to the gender imbalance" in the ever-expanding industry technology industry.
“Technology is transforming industries all around the world—and none more so than the media and marketing sector. The COVID-19 pandemic has seen digital transformation go from a nice-to-have to must almost overnight. To add to this, it has also led to the biggest shift in consumption habits of a lifetime and has seen many media businesses forced to change their entire business model,” says advertising and marketing industry publication B&T in its statement announcing this year’s awards.
“Driving this technological change are talented and creative individuals that understand how technology can be used to help the industry progress. Unfortunately, technology remains a heavily male-dominated industry.
“According to the European Commission’s Women in Digital Scoreboard from 2019, only 17 per cent of ICT specialists are women, while women in ICT earn 19 per cent less than men on average.
“To help create the change that is needed to address these inequalities, we’re bringing back our Women Leading Tech Awards again in 2021. By recognising all of the brilliant female tech talent in our industry, B&T hopes that these women will no longer be excluded from the conversation.”
B&T editor-in-chief David Hovenden said: “When the world is being swallowed by software, we think it’s important that the digital world isn’t created purely by white men.
“The Women Leading Tech awards was launched last year to celebrate the women already making a difference to the gender imbalance in the ever-expanding industry.
“Our hope is other women and particularly young girls who see those leading in the industry will be inspired to join it.”
Like last year, there will be awards this year for Advocacy, Data Science, Design, Engineering, Entrepreneur/Founder, Executive Leader, Marketing, Mentor, Product, and Sales, along with new categories to recognise those who are working to build female technology capabilities at the educational level.
B&T says the new Education Provider category is open to any tertiary education provider offering STEM based degrees or courses, and has demonstrated a holistic and long-term commitment to the recruitment and retention of female students.
The will be staged at Sydney’s Jones Bay Wharf, on Tuesday, 20 April, with entries for the awards closing at 5pm on Monday, 1 March, and late entries closing at 5pm on Monday, 8 March.
